Re:Yep,With steak!

I will second this, many months later! I had a nice glass of GT Stagg as I prepped my New York Steaks for the BBQ tomorrow night. A nice light rub of olive oil, a good coat of one of my favorite rubs, then I individually wrap them in plastic wrap and into the fridge for the night. The Stagg is gone, steaks are put to bed, and now it is bed for me.
Tomorrow evening I think I will open one of my WTRR 101's to enjoy during the cook. I will unwrap those babies and throw them on the grill, nice fire at about 1000 degrees! 90 seconds a side with a 45 second angle adjustment for perfect grill marks (I love nice grill marks). Then they come off the grill for 15 minutes while it cools down to 400. Back on they go for a finishing 4 minutes a side that should bring them to a nice medium rare. I will even leave them on longer for the well-done crowd. Should be a great day. Good friends...good drink...good food...Hmmmm, might have to change the order to Good Drink first...just another question to ponder over...while enjoying a good drink! Hope you are all having a great weekend as well.

Re: With steak?

Originally Posted by TNbourbon

I like a peppery red wine -- say, Shiraz/Syrah or Zinfandel -- with steak (beef), but almost always use a bourbon-based marinade if I'm preparing it myself. Old Forester 86 or Ancient Age 80 or 90 are good examples for use.

As a barkeep for a fine dining restaurant, I might also recommend one of the new Malbecs from Argentina. They're nice, dry, reds that rival Cabernet Sauvignon as a great "steak wine"!

As for whiskey, if it's a BBQ'd steak, then yeah, I'll reach for a bourbon, something heavy and woody, like Booker's. Though I do admit that the Talisker 10-year scotch pairs pretty well with a good steak, too, particularly if it was dry-aged...

Re: With steak?

So how many prefer wine with steak over whisky? I have been a wine drinker with red meat for a long time and I feel a little funny when I drink bourbon with my beef.
Anyone else?

I also prefer wine with steak, in fact I almost never drink spirits with food.

I try and enjoy a lot of red wines with my steak, so many that I have a hard time keeping up with what I like. Some relatively recent successes include a Kendall Jackson Cabernet Sauvignon and a Coppola Diamond Label Claret. I am also very fond of Cotes du Rhone with beef, especially during the cold months.

Re: With steak?

As a barkeep for a fine dining restaurant, I might also recommend one of the new Malbecs from Argentina. They're nice, dry, reds that rival Cabernet Sauvignon as a great "steak wine"!

As for whiskey, if it's a BBQ'd steak, then yeah, I'll reach for a bourbon, something heavy and woody, like Booker's. Though I do admit that the Talisker 10-year scotch pairs pretty well with a good steak, too, particularly if it was dry-aged...

Can you recommend a good malbec? I have thus far been underwhelmed with the examples of the varietal that I have tasted.

Re: With steak?

Jeff, Have you tried Almos Malbec. I must admit this is the only Malbec I can recall having recently, and after years of working in wine-intensive restaurants, I have adopted a "just drink it" attitude.

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Re: With steak?

Having recently returned from 10 days in Argentina including 4 in the Mendoza wine region, I'll offer my opinion. As stated above, the malbecs tend to have a drier and sometimes short finish. If you're expecting a real fleshy rich finish like you find in some CA cabs, you probably won't find it in a malbec. None the less, we found many that we really enjoyed. Here are my opinions on some you might find here in the US.

Catena Zapata makes a wide range of wines at various price points. Their "Catena" malbec is good at $18 and their "Alta" is very nice at $40.

Acheval Ferrer makes great malbecs, but can be hard to find and a little pricey.

Tikal makes many excellent wines including their malbec at $25 and a red blend (called "Amore" if I recall) at $20.

O. Fournier makes a nice blend of tempranillo and malbec. Their "B Crux" is very nice and should run about $20.

I was disappointed with Salenteins wines as I found their malbecs finish to be too short.

Alta Vista makes a great reserve malbec for about $35.

In summary, I'd try the Catena Malbec for $18 to see if you like a "typical" good quality malbec. You may find you simply prefer a cab with your steak.

Coincidentally, I am planning on bringing some of these wines to Bardstown for the Sampler dinner.